My interests have centered on questions related to the immune system. Specifically, the study of autoimmune diseases has remained for me an interesting paradigm with which to delineate the mechanisms of tolerance and immune response. As an MD-PhD student, I expect to further my training in microbiology and immunology to achieve a scientific base with which to study autoimmune diseases. In order to begin to obtain some clinical knowledge of these diseases, I have been making rounds with Dr. Charles Christian, the Head of Rheumatology at the Hospital for Special Surgery, and also I helped organize a first year introductory class in Rheumatology. I hope to combine my research and clinical knowledge of autoimmune diseases to not only delineate immune mechanisms, but also to develop better therapies that help cure debilitating diseases.